Vienna, 1877 – 1941, Opole / Poland
Albert Neufeld was born in 1877 and deported to Opole, Poland, on February 26, 1941. There, he was murdered because of his Jewish heritage.
What little is known about his life as a piano teacher and composer is due to a stroke of luck and his membership in Freemasonry. Through his membership in the co-ed Masonic order Le Droit Humain—which he joined shortly before the so-called Anschluss of Austria—he was able to entrust his compositions to a fellow Mason, Lilli Heu. She and her family managed to flee to Great Britain, where she preserved his musical legacy. Years after World War II, her son John Heu donated the scores to the Jewish Museum, from where they found their way—along with the opera *Almonsor*—to the Exile Art Center at the mdw—University of Music and Performing Arts in 2024. There they await rediscovery. The musical adaptation of Heinrich Heine’s only drama, *Almonsor*, tells the story of a couple during the time of the Crusades. The situation of the lovers—she a European, he an Arab—draws certain parallels to the period before the start of World War II due to racial and religious differences. At Albert Neufeld’s request, Lilli Heu had written the libretto and a prologue for the opera, thereby transposing the plot to the present day. The transfer of his works to her was therefore no coincidence, but rather the result of their collaboration. Albert Neufeld, who was 22 years older than his fellow writer, had taught Lilli Heu as a student at the Black Forest School even before World War I.
Albert Neufeld attended the music conservatory and successfully completed his training in piano in 1897. He earned his living as a piano accompanist, which took him to various cities. But he was also active as a composer of light music, as evidenced by his 1923 piece “Shimmy, Lottchen’s Divan.” In 1927, the City School Board approved his private piano school at Lilienbrunngasse 12 in Vienna’s 2nd district. He worked for eight years in this apartment, where he also lived. In 1935, he surrendered his license. Albert Neufeld dedicated his life to music and remained unmarried.
Neufeld’s admission to the mixed lodge Harmonie of Le Droit Humain likely took place as late as 1938. By then, political storm clouds were already gathering, a fact of which the musician was well aware; indeed, he entrusted his opera, along with several other scores, to Lilli Heu so that she could take them abroad. In the introductory commentary to *Almonsor*, Lilli Heu writes: “A departing train marked by a final red lantern.” The text begins with the words: “Without farewell, never to return…” This proved true for both the librettist and the composer. While she was able to flee Vienna for a foreign country, the 64-year-old became a victim of the Shoah in 1941.
(Susanne Thomasberger)
